Previous to BP 1.1, all user registration was dealt with by WordPress, so it’s technically correct to point people towards existing WordPress/MU resources and forums for help.
Since BP 1.1, however, BP changes the new account confirmation/activation email – because on the standard BP 1.1 signup page, the user can pick their own password. And of course, it’s a security issue if we were to somehow send their (encrypted) password back to them. So BP 1.1 overrides the standard WordPress MU email so it doesn’t include the password text.
But, the activation link is part of WordPress. Yes, the BuddyPress default theme uses this behaviour too – but it calls the WordPress code.
Yes it is confusing for users that you have to make a post to one place and to change your avatar to another.
Well what we are doing now, is putting all buddypress ‘admin’ settings in the wp-admin and reorganized them…
right now we have:
Posts
Comments
Messages
Settings
Appearance
(with submenus off course)
Everything else is stripped out. I can imagine 100 of structuring this, but for this particular install, this is what we needed.
We have very limited time.
So what i did is used an existing “admin theme plugin” and changed it so the wp-admin matches the look and feel of our front end. (think eg. facebook ‘front and back’, or lastfm etc ).
The most difficult part is getting the bp functionality such as messages completely work back end. Which atm we haven’t managed yet.
I’m still lost. I also don’t really have time to look at this until the weekend sometime. Could you help me again please?
Yep, I go to the main blog via Users menu (not site admin>users) and…
Could you give me a sample link (feel free to cut your domain off the beginning), i.e. http://example.com/how_to/get_to_this/page. I’m being a noob and can’t see it 
...EXCEPT the email with username & randomly generated password that should replace that activation email shown above. (I'm thinking this is a wordpress email? Not sure.)
Correct. Welcome Pack doesn’t (or shouldn’t) touch the activation email, which is why this issue is so weird-sounding.
You ARE aware since BP 1.1, if a new user registers via http://testbp.org/register, they are able to pick their password and as such it isn’t emailed to them? (Though they still get a confirmation/account activation email)
@jeff
I appreciate the feedback and perspective. What’s weird is I built a modular php/mysql site circa 2002 basically overusing includes, very basic css and taking functionality from Hotscripts.com’s PHP repository. In fact, what I liked about php was the modularity of what I was doing (even if a bit sloppy). BP/Wordpress seems to promise the same, but frankly the number of sites that deviate from the structure of the standard theme is small (maybe it’s too new). It’s like the complexity of the theme structure has scared people off or the fact that the themes are both style and functionality makes it difficult to be modular.
I’m hard-headed and have no hurried timeline – I’m designing for myself. I’ll probably take this on and suffer the pain of BP’s infancy just like I did in 2002. That was my education. What would be helpful is a methodology for taking on something like this.
My threshhold question is whether to use a theme framework as a starting point or whether that’ll be too restrictive and I just need to bite the bullet and build my own theme. I’d be on the hook for updates (sucks), but it sounds like it may save some pain. My limited understanding of actions/filters is that I should be able to build almost anything from a good theme framework using functions.php and style.css, etc., but not sure if that’s true or whether it’s worth pain of learning that way of developing instead of just tearing apart templates.
I’m sure, by the time I’m done there’ll be dozens of modular BP themes/frameworks to choose from. That’s what happened after I slaved over the site in 2002. Who knew WP was there with plugins for most of the stuff I hardcoded myself.
I assume you mean the plugin Group Forum Subscripton for BuddyPress found here:
https://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/group-forum-subscription-for-buddypress/
You need to contact the plugin developer and provide them with the details about your issue.
I’m moving this thread to the proper forum, “Third Party Components & Plugins”.
Most of the sites that you mention required many weeks to months of hard design and custom coding work. You need the proper design, CSS, and PHP skills to tackle this on your own. Or, you need to hire out an expert WordPress/BuddyPress developer like GigaOM Pro did–or even a team of developers.
Yep, I go to the main blog via Users menu (not site admin>users) and input the username and email address, select skip confirmation email, send. I get all of the notifications welcome pack sends out EXCEPT the email with username & randomly generated password that should replace that activation email shown above. (I’m thinking this is a wordpress email? Not sure.)
The weird thing is when I do the same process from a sub-blog everything behaves the same except I DO get the email with the username & randomly generated password in addition.
In case it helps here’s what happens over 3 tests from each main & sub blog dashboards:
MAIN BLOG DASHBOARD:
1. Broken activation email – came first all 3 times
2. Then these 3 come, random order each time:
Welcome pack welcome email
Welcome pack friend invite email notification
Welcome pack group invite email notification
SUB BLOG NEW USER:
1. Broken activation email
2. Then these 4 come, random order each time:
Account is setup email with username and randomly generated password
Welcome pack welcome email
Welcome pack friend invite email notification
Welcome pack group invite email notification
Using google, beginning to answer my own question.
http://vocecommunications.com/blog/2009/07/expanding-wordpress-with-buddypress-the-tasty-kitchen/
Now I’m wondering if I’m biting off more than I can chew. Anyone else taking on something this aggressive?
I’ve searched and there are lots of posts, so maybe it’s because I’m a noob, but . . .
How do I integrate BP into a site for functionality like the sites on the WP showcase of BP http://wordpress.org/showcase/flavor/buddypress/ ??? Tastykitchen, Tank Wars, GigaOm Pro? We see them on the home page for inspiration, but I’d like someone to explain the methodology.
Not do the work for me (although that’d be nice), but explain:
1) How they went about it – methodolgy
2) What level of modification to BP was necessary
3) What were the key hurdles and how resolved
4) What they learned about BP/WP/bbP from the experience
This would be extremely helpful to me. If my searches were insufficient and someone has a link to this information – please post it.
What happens when you disable FeedWordPress?
If the errors go away, then there is an incompatibility issue with that plugin and the current version of BP and/or version 2.8.4 of WPMU. Contact the plugin developer, provide them with the details about your issue, and ask when the plugin will support BP 1.1.1 and WPMU 2.8.4.
Looking at the listing for FeedWordPress ( https://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/feedwordpress/ ), it does not mention that it is even compatible at all with BP. It also indicates that it is only compatible up to version 2.8.1 of WP.
Well, I agree with WordPressfan…
But i’m still stuck 
Hello to all,
we released new version of Buddypress Multilingual.
It works out of the box with Buddypress themes (tested with BuddyPress Default Home Theme 1.0.3).
Next week we are going to see if migration to Buddypress 1.1 will require any adjustments and test it more on guest blogs.
@Erich73: we added switching on the fly. Thanks for suggestion.
I believe our issues are different but both may be directly related to conflicts between buddypress and feedwordpress. Buddypress is a sitewide plugin and the buddypress bar loads for every blog page – so every blog error could potentially be related to buddypress. I don’t have my problem when buddypress in deactivated. So my issue (and yours) with feedwordpress may be a buddypress issue rather than a wpmu issue.
Given your pm reply, I assume you’re not experiencing the same error as I. I have not seen the issue you reported either.
https://buddypress.org/forums/topic/feedwordpress-and-php-warning
Thanks! Shockingly confusing to find BuddyPress plugins… It dawns on me that WordPress.org is the place to look, and not here:
https://buddypress.org/extend/plugins/
That should be cleared up somehow. Personally I wish BuddyPress plugins would only be posted here on BuddyPress.org, so there is one centrl place to look.
Anyway, muchos gracias David;-)
The problem with using the default child theme as a base for a new theme is that it is much more work. Rather than fit the thousands of WordPress themes into the default child theme, it seems easier to fit the needed BuddyPress features into the style of the many, many WordPress themes being produced for free or commercially.
Well… this doesn’t help… but really… as far as popular CMS tools go… the WordPress backend is about as easy and intuitive as it gets. I find most clients take to it pretty quickly and easily and end up loving it and using it a lot. Compare that to Joomla sites I’ve worked on where the clients end up abandoning the site because it take a computer science degree to wrap your head around it’s confusing interface and concepts. Again… I know that doesn’t really help you.
Have you looked at limiting user roles and screen options to streamline the WP backend? I always set clients up with something less than full admin privileges and turn off a bunch of screen options they won’t need or understand.
My bp component working fine in 1.0.2 but giving me warning in 1.1.1
I replaced
bp_core_add_nav_item(
__( ‘Example’, ‘example ),
$bp->example->slug
);
by
$args = array(
‘name’ => __( ‘Example’, ‘example’ ),
‘slug’ => $bp->example->slug,
‘item_css_id’ => false,
‘show_for_displayed_user’ => true,
‘site_admin_only’ => false,
‘position’ => 99,
‘screen_function’ => false,
‘default_subnav_slug’ => false
);
bp_core_new_nav_item($args);
but giving me warning
call_user_func_array() [function.call-user-func-array]: First argument is expected to be a valid callback, ” was given in /opt/lampp/htdocs/wordpress-mu4/wp-includes/plugin.php on line 414
Thanks in advance
Same here I have been looking at doing a rewrite of the dashboard side for users, because not everyone is a seasoned wordpress user.
Very nice work. It’s the use of buddypress as a CMS that I’m interested in and this is a good example. Patiently waiting for your learnings, expecially integrating as a CMS with other aspects of WordPress. http://www.tastykitchen.com is my model, but I have no idea how to accomplish that.
I’m preparing soon to dive head-first into the process of shoehorning BuddyPress internal pages inside the design of a WordPress theme. The primary questions are: what code is required to activate BuddyPress functions within a WordPress theme and how do I call BuddyPress functions within a WordPress theme?
@sdrib
this is what I am looking for, absolutely need somethin like this.
The WP-Dashboard is just too complicated for my users.
Please let me know about the outcome……
You’re welcome porceon.
Let me know how it goes, and don’t heistate to post your experiencies here.
As I told you I didn’t get to finish integrating, and I’ve to put in on hold, while I am working on someting else. So your experiments with this way of integration may turn helpful.
Cheers.
Vivanista.com was a redesign project. Their first website was a custom-built application using Ruby on Rails and I opted to move them to BuddyPress as well as implement at redesign.
http://www.vivanista.com
There are still some minor fixes and changes being made to the website but here are the features:
1. Classifieds (powered by deep integration with BBPress)
Uses BBPress Forums and Topics in a manner similar to Craigslist
2. Boutiques (e-commerce on WordPress MU)
Renamed ‘Blogs’ in the language definition to become ‘Boutiques’ which allow users to create online stores (similar to Etsy) and sell boutique products to other members. Boutique creation is not available to any member and must contact Vivanista to sign up.
3. Facebook Connect via plugin
A good amount of the site’s audience is already on Facebook so this plugin was essential to making signup as painless as possible.
4. Clubs via BuddyPress Groups
More language/label changes
5. Invite Friends
Existing plugins for inviting friends are extremely lacking. Created my own which is still in its infancy but will be developed further and released as a plugin.
6. Content Management
I tried to make the management of content via pages and posts as easy as possible for the content creators and Vivanista staff. I kept custom fields to a minimum and instead of trying to mess with complex thumbnail generation, I’ve opted for simple CSS styling of the first image in a post to display thumbnails.
Some more basic info: it is still running on a pre-1.1+ theme so it will need to be changed to work with the new parent-child theme framework.
I’m writing up some case studies based on this project and the experience of working with WordPress MU, BuddyPress and all of the integrations that were necessary to provide the client with the features they desired. There are quite a few pain points I’ve encountered and either developed solutions for or devised workarounds that I will detail further. I will post a link to the case studies once they are complete.
